Caroline Polachek Captures Delusion and Desire in her Newest Album

By Adora Brown

Caroline Polachek crawls across a grimy subway floor in search of paradise on the cover of her new album, Desire, I Want to Turn into You. She uses Greek mythology and eerie, yet personal lyricism to capture a constant state of desire, of wanting, even when you know the risks. The album is a complete pop experience as you immerse yourself in the mind of Caroline Polachek, or what she refers to as her island. 

The first track opens with a howling note on “Welcome To My Island.” Polachek immediately begins to mix genres in her typical avant-garde style, as a techno beat graces the backing track alongside siren-like vocals. She nods to the album title singing “desire, I want to turn into you.” It is a strong introduction into her mind and musical style as the listener prepares to dive even deeper into the album. Polachek follows with the experimental piece “Pretty in Possible.” With no verses or choruses, she takes you along on an eclectic journey about power, describing the song as a “train of thought.” The lyric could also be heard as “pretty impossible,” and the song takes almost a teasing tone about the subject’s own capabilities with lyrics such as “But down in the deep end / I can’t be left alone.” Immediately, the subject subverts her own position to what people assume about her – beautiful but incapable.

We go off the grid in “Bunny Is A Rider” as the sounds of birds chirping accompany lines such as “giddy up, can’t find her.” Polachek dives into an escapist, tropical fantasy with a sense that Bunny herself is “so nonphysical.” This alter ego of sorts is simply not to be found, completely unavailable to the world around them. Classical guitar and staccato claps set the scene for “Sunset,” a flamenco piece on the false sense of safety in relationships. The Apollo-like figure she rides off into the sunset with is a metaphor for her own naivety. Polachek uses hyperbole such as “forever fearless” to highlight the disillusionment of a new relationship. 

“Crude Drawing Of An Angel” is about the gaze. The song plays with many of the same background tropical sounds as previous tracks with the addition of techno drums. Polachek uses drawing both in the physical sense and to illustrate the scene – “draw your blood, draw your bath.” And yet the subject of the drawing is unaware of the watchful eye, only slowly gaining consciousness. The track takes an unabashed position on a physical form of desire where the gazer can not help but look.  

Possibly one of Polachek’s most poignant songs on the album is right in the middle, “I Believe,” a tribute song to late hyperpop pioneer SOPHIE. Using retro orchestral synth, Polachek makes an unironic throwback to the dramatic sounds of the nineties. She sings, “And I’d have said it was impossible / To find you in this life and keep you just enough” in a touching remembrance of her friend. “Butterfly Net” brings back the acoustic guitar from “Sunset” with the high emotionality of “I Believe.” It once again tackles loss – the idea of letting go of the intangible. She tries to capture the “light” of this person, but to no avail. 

There is something hypnotizing about Polachek’s “oohs,” and “Hopedrunk Everasking” is a stunning illustration of how she uses sound to suspend mystery. The tone slows as she takes her “final form” and slips deep into love. This form of love is so eternal it ends in death – “They’ll find our bones / And yet, they won’t.” She continues these sounds on “Smoke,” instead switching to a shaking bass that almost surrounds her voice. She both literally and figuratively loses control as she lets out a melodic scream at the end (“It’s just smoke”). And Polachek captures the delusion of desire on “Billions” with the last line of the album being “I’ve never felt so close to you” sung by the Trinity Children’s Choir. 

Polachek continues to explore the different sounds of pop, combining so many varying styles of music (synth, techno, flamenco, acoustic) to create a sound that is uniquely hers. There is nothing subtle about what Polachek has to say about desire. The album is a maximalist explosion of sound that showcases her musical knowledge and commitment to creating. Her previous album, Pang, was an immersive experience in love, whereas Desire takes a step back to observe her own disillusionment and naivety.